Zimbabwe and Botswana will meet in the opening game of the TotalEnergies Caf Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations 2025 Cosafa qualifier on September 26, the start of a journey towards qualification for the continental finals next year.
The pair clash in a Group A fixture that will be followed by a meeting between hosts Mozambique and eSwatini.
Madagascar have withdrawn from the competition, which leaves only three teams in Group B, as record 12-time winners Zambia and Angola kick off that pool in a heavyweight clash a day later.
The first games in Group C will also be played on the same day as eight-time winners South Africa play Malawi and, before that, Comoros take on Lesotho.
The group stages run through to October 1, with the top team in each pool and the best placed runner-up across the three groups advancing to the semifinals.
That will be played on October 3, with the final two days later. There is no bronze medal match.
The two teams that reach the final will qualify for the TotalEnergies Caf Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations scheduled for next year.
The early years of the Cosafa Under-20 regional competition were dominated by the Two Zs, with Zambia winning six and Zimbabwe three of the first nine tournaments held.
South Africa were the first team to break the mould when they triumphed in 2000, having been losing finalists in 1995 and 1999.
A year earlier, in 1999, they had taken over the hosting of the event, which before then had been spread around the region.
Each tournament up until 2009 was held in the Rainbow Nation, but the winners were less easy to predict.
Madagascar became only the fourth country to win the event when they surprisingly triumphed in 2005, beating shock finalists Lesotho 1-0 in the final.
Mozambique added their name to the trophy when they lifted the 2020 edition. Cosafa.com
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